The effects of pilgrimage on individual life

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of pilgrimage on individual life using the interview technique, which is one of the methods and techniques used in the area of religion psychology.Pilgrimage is the act of visiting sacred locations on certain dates to perform specific rituals. Pilgrimage is a type of worship adopted by all religions. Throughout the course of history, humans have attributed divinity to certain locations and believed that, through rituals performed at these locations, they would experience purification and self-reflection.In the first section, the theoretical framework of the study is constructed. At first, religion and dimensions of religiosity to be discussed, the relation between belief- worship is refered and informed shortly about background on pilgrimage in various religions. After that, talked about the symbolic descriptions of Islamic pilgrimage rituals and the psychological process the pilgrim experiences. In the second section, about research process and method apprised. In the third section, which also includes the data obtained from interviews with fifty Muslim pilgrims. In the final analysis, it is concluded that the new experience gained through pilgrimage can be summarized as a milestone that creates a ?before and after pilgrimage? dichotomy in the individual?s life.Keywords: Pilgrimage, worship, religion psychology, individual life